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TheDarkCynder

Rats, Ferrets, Snakes, other exotic animals.

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I have an anole, does he count as exotic? He's cool, doesn't like to be held but knows when I'm talking to him and looks at me while I do so.

I used to have anoles, they're awesome lizards. What kind of anole do you have?

 

I've also had gopher snakes. Beautiful snakes, and they were pretty easy to take care of. We had to let them go when we moved though, we were scared people would kill them if they escaped.

Edited by alupe99a

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He is a green anole though he insists on being brown.

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Ok I never post in the forum (at least, I can't remember the last time I did), but I just saw this thread and found it naturally interesting so popped on to leave my own little comments (hopefully not too long.)

 

I currently own 5 birds (as a family, only 2 are mine personally), 4 Indian Ringneck parakeets (also known as Asian/Australian parrots) and a green cheek conure.

 

I personally own a 4 1/2ft female Okeetee corn snake and hope to purchase more exotic rat snakes in the future. (As soon as I am sure I have the capability of keeping them alive)

 

My sister owns a giant bearded dragon (probably not considered exotic)

 

I will say though to anyone looking into purchasing a bird (first time), whether a budgie or a macaw: Out of many pets I've had over the years, hamsters, guinie pigs, dogs, cats, horse, fish, snakes, lizard, and turtles, and out of any of the pets I used to care for when I was volunteering at my local petstore (where my job was to tame the wilder animals brought in to be resold), Birds are by far the most work. Cleaning is constant. They throw things, more or less depending on the bird. Some birds scream incessantly, and it can actually lead to loving pet owners having to rehome them. They BITE when they feel like it (especially the closer to get to a parrot, and I don't mean size wise. Parrots have some attitude, and some other, smaller breeds have the same thing).

 

That's not to say I haven't enjoyed my birds more than any other pet I've had. I started with budgies and learned no two are the same. I can not stress this enough! One bird will be the most loving animal you can imagine, and the next will be a living nightmare, biting you and others and throwing itself at the bars on the cage. My current birds are loud, and they vary in sweetness. All four were hand raised, I hand fed 3 of them from 3 weeks old and my sister hand fed hers. *they pick their people*. Which means you could buy a bird for yourself and it could choose to love your sister, brother, mother, daughter, etc. more than you, and for no apparent reason.

 

Birds can be extremely appealing. Some can learn to talk, very well. Some cuddle. Most are highly intelligent and with daily training can learn tricks you could never dream of. They vary in appearance and can be quite stunning.

 

Basically my point boils down to this (and again, I'm sure most people know this I just can't help myself after seeing so many honestly clueless people walk in and adopt a bird that they find out they either can't afford or care for in a matter of weeks)

 

NEVER buy a bird on a whim! Do not research one bird and think you can handle another (even if it is smaller) bird without getting the facts![/b] These animals are costly, and it can be very hard on a fragile animal like that to flip flop around homes. Just because an "exotic" pet is right for someone doesn't mean it's good for everyone. Unfortunately these animals do have a reputation for being "cool", "rare" , some of them "strange", and it leads to a great deal of suffering for the animals. To those who think one move won't affect a bird that much, hold the shaking animal in your hands, watch it flinch every time you near it with food (because it is too shaken now to eat on its own), and then talk. There is never a one size fits all when it comes to pets. I applaud all pet owners, Of any kind, dog, cat, mouse, elephant (ok you get the point), who do the research and really know what they are doing before they get their pet. Yes, accidents and tragedy will still happen, and some pets will be left in poor positions and homeless, etc. But the very best thing you can do to ensure a happy life with your pet (remember with birds that COULD be quite a while) is to know the animal before you meet it.

 

Once again not lecturing anyone, just had to get that off my chest. Haha sorry for the rambling. ANd hope you're all enjoying your exotic pets, I know for a fact I'm having a blast smile.gif

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@Kat_z: That was cool and interesting info about birds. I've always been interested in conures, a few years ago I delved into research about Nandays and decided I wanted one. However, turns out I'm allergic to birds. Go figure.

 

 

 

A Tribble video.

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If there's anyone who knows stuff about rats, help?

 

So basically we have these two rats, Zuri and Muffin (out of eight total) which have these strange 'tumours' of sorts at the base of their tails (not part of the tail itself). Neither rat is related, just for clarification. Also for clarification, these are not mammary tumours, cysts or abscesses. Muffin's is the most advanced. It's huge, but doesn't seem to have any effects on her health other than walking and doing her business (she can't hold her pee in). It's not hard like a tumour usually is, which is what really puzzles me. Zuri's a lot less advanced (she's barely a year old) and instead looks more like a male's testicles than an actual swelling. Whether or not it'll advance to the point Muffin's at or not remains to be seen.

 

So in short I'm wondering if anyone knows what they might be, what they are caused by and how they could be dealt with?

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If there's anyone who knows stuff about rats, help?

 

So basically we have these two rats, Zuri and Muffin (out of eight total) which have these strange 'tumours' of sorts at the base of their tails (not part of the tail itself). Neither rat is related, just for clarification. Also for clarification, these are not mammary tumours, cysts or abscesses. Muffin's is the most advanced. It's huge, but doesn't seem to have any effects on her health other than walking and doing her business (she can't hold her pee in). It's not hard like a tumour usually is, which is what really puzzles me. Zuri's a lot less advanced (she's barely a year old) and instead looks more like a male's testicles than an actual swelling. Whether or not it'll advance to the point Muffin's at or not remains to be seen.

 

So in short I'm wondering if anyone knows what they might be, what they are caused by and how they could be dealt with?

are you certain they are females (sorry but I once met someone who had males but through they were females)

from that little bit of info they sound like males, male rats leave a pee trail when they walk as marking

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are you certain they are females (sorry but I once met someone who had males but through they were females)

from that little bit of info they sound like males, male rats leave a pee trail when they walk as marking

I just knew someone was going to ask that! XD Yes, I am certain they are females. Zuri was in heat last night, and both sisters have visible nipples. We own two young boy rats and the difference is clear.

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are you certain they are females (sorry but I once met someone who had males but through they were females)

from that little bit of info they sound like males, male rats leave a pee trail when they walk as marking

The person makes a comparison with a male rat's assets right in the post. Plus, male rats will have their testicles show up much earlier than than that...

(Note that not all male rats will leave trails, and some female rats are very active at marking.)

 

Is there any possibility of getting tissue samples? Chances are the only way to fix it is to cut it out, anyway. (Not all tumours feel the same. Some specific ones can feel quite loose/soft.)

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like I said I once knew someone who had males but through they were females, I had to get my town's breeder to tell her what was what

 

anyway I cant help when something is wrong with one of my boys my first move is anyways the vet

a few years ago one of my boys got some lumps he died 2 weeks later, the day I had him booked in for the operation

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Is there any possibility of getting tissue samples? Chances are the only way to fix it is to cut it out, anyway. (Not all tumours feel the same. Some specific ones can feel quite loose/soft.)

Tissue samples, hmm? That never crossed my mind. Right now we are absolutely broke and can't afford another trip to the vet (recently took a rat with respiratory issues up), and chances are it'll be too close to delicate areas to be operated on, which risks an even earlier death (death by infection and losing $300+ as opposed to letting the tumour grow but having the rat last for another six+ months until discomfort kicks in).

 

Most likely it is a tumour, it just strikes me as really odd that two rats of completely different ages from two completely unrelated litters have practically the same ailment o-0 I was thinking it might be either sheer coincidence, something related to their diet, etcetera and so forth...

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@Kat_z: That was cool and interesting info about birds. I've always been interested in conures, a few years ago I delved into research about Nandays and decided I wanted one. However, turns out I'm allergic to birds. Go figure.

 

 

 

A Tribble video.

 

Thank you smile.gif Conures sure are fun! I've cared for many but only owned two. Sun conures are extremely loud. Especially at sunrise and sunset, or whenever the doorbell rang, they saw a hawk, or any other "threat" to their "flock". Green cheeks or pineapple conures would be considerably quieter. I've heard conures described as the clown of the bird family, and I couldnt say it better. They are super intelligent and chew more than some other species but they are so incredibly fun to own!

 

Ah I rambled again haha, sorry. That totally stinks that you are allergic to birds!

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Lol my pet snake got loose in the house. We found him here:

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In the cabinet under his cage. After we put him in his feeding tank I'm inspecting his terrarium. He has a lid on his terrarium, not like a cover of cardboard, it's a wire mesh lid that snaps on the tank. He might of gotten the strength to push it somehow.

 

We're trying to lure him out with two rats. Right now the rats are thawing out.

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Zuko was being super adorable while eating his half of a grape. biggrin.gif

 

user posted image

 

Of course, they are always adorable when they eat...

 

user posted image

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My pet tarantula died yesterday. So now it's just me and my rescued Pit Bull Donald. Oh yeah, and my corn snake, who literally just got home. She doesn't have a name quite yet. I can't think of any names. I've had so many snakes (small ones, not dangerous) that I don't consider them exotic anymore. My rule is that I never get venomous snakes. Or big snakes.

 

 

And I have the stuff I mentioned earlier.

Edited by Fightandspawn

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I would love to have an Axolotl but they are not available to get in my country :/

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Or Kapibara laugh.gif

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Tribble my fox passed away due to unknown reasons last Saturday. I found her in her play tunnel after I got home from work, it looks like she went to sleep and didn't wake up. The vet has no idea what happened to her.

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It's always heartbreaking when an animal you love passes away, and Tribble was quite young. I'm very sorry that you weren't able to spend more time with her, from the videos I've seen she had a winning personality. It's probably not much of a consolation coming from someone on a forum, but I think she had a good life with you, you certainly went above and beyond to provide a good home for her. All the best to you Draco, and thank you for sharing your experience with her.

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We have a Blue-Crowned conure, if that counts as exotic? unsure.gif

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So far I have personally had a few different pets, not sure how many of them are exotics though...

I've hat four different rats.

I've had Several pet mice.

I've had 6 different ferrets, four of which I currently own.

I've had 4 different Fire Bellied Toads

and 1 frog I found and decided to keep.

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I would love to have an Axolotl but they are not available to get in my country :/

user posted image

Or Kapibara laugh.gif

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my third grade teacher had an axolotl for a class pet it was cool 0u0 is it against the law or can you jsut not buy them?

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I used to have a crested gecko, but he died a few months ago sad.gif After several months of excessive mourning, I'm considering getting a new reptilian friend.

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